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USA Domestic: 12/14 for Standard; 12/23 for Express; International: 12/7 for Standard; 12/19 for ExpressOceania, New Zealand, Maori, ca. 1900 CE. A trio of well-carved hei tiki Maori pendants, with one made from a milky green nephrite jade, the other two from green stones, probably green obsidian. Each depicts a stylized human figure. All three of these are genderless; hei tiki are either female or without visible signs of gender. Each has its hands that rest atop its knees, with its lower legs and feet joined together as if crossed; the head is tilted to the right. All three have incised faces with reddish pigment in the deep grooves that outline the large, perfectly round eyes. Their mouths are large, with the lips set, and twin lines serving as the nose. Originally, each was made to be a pendant worn on a necklace. One comes with a mid-20th century brass chain for suspension. Size of largest: 1.15" W x 2.1" H (2.9 cm x 5.3 cm)
In Polynesian culture including the Maori, the word "tiki" means carved human figure, possibly originating from the myth of Tiki, the first man. Tiki are common through Polynesia, but the hei tiki, the pendant form seen here, is uniquely Maori. The flattened shape, replicated for nearly all hei tiki, is probably because these are made from adze blades. Examples of half-carved hei tiki/adzes have been found, and sometimes on completed tiki a portion of the original cutting surface remains. The nephrite stone was carved into prestigious goods in pre-European New Zealand and the Maori name for the South Island, Ti Wai Pounamu, refers to the stone because it is sourced from there. Since contact with Europeans, the hei tiki have become symbols of the Maori people and by extension of New Zealand - Air New Zealand passengers in the 1960s and 1970s received small green plastic replicas, and photos from the Beatles 1964 tour of the country show them wearing them around their necks.
Provenance: ex-San Francisco, California, USA collection
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#148849
Condition
All three are intact, with light signs of wear commensurate with age. The brass chain on one is mid-20th century CE; however, the hei tiki it is holding as well as the other hei tikis are antique - ca. 1900 CE.